All to Christ
Acts 4:31-37; 4/9/2023; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang
Introduction
Giving all to Christ is an inevitable choice in the relationship between God and man, and it is also an inevitable process of spiritual life. Unless you don’t really choose Christ, going all to Christ is the only option in life. Let’s look at the first point:
Filled with the Holy Spirit again
When the Holy Spirit is given by the Father and the Son, the primary mission of the Holy Spirit is to glorify the Lord! On their mission to Christ, the apostles of the early church experienced prayer, the filling of the Holy Spirit, and the speaking of God’s word. First, pray persistently. The scriptures say that prayer is over, and it is not simple. Because this is the first public prayer of the church recorded in the history of the church, our church prayers today are also based on this. That is, when the church prays, it is as if we are giving all the glory and praise to Christ. The scriptures let us see that the contents of prayer include worship, praise, Bible study, combining the situation of the church, expressing faith, asking for prayers, praying to God, offering thanks, entrusting in faith, etc. The Bible says that such a prayer shakes the meeting place. The shaking did not knock down the house, but let the disciples ”receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken. (Hebrews 12:28)”
Second, be filled with the Holy Spirit. The entire book of Acts is full of traces of being filled with the Holy Spirit, so the book of Acts is also called the book of the Holy Spirit. What I want to share most here is the relationship between prayer and the filling of the Holy Spirit, that is, the filling of the Holy Spirit is the grace bestowed by God after disciples pray. Not by sight, but by faith. Every Wednesday prayer meeting in our church is filled with the Holy Spirit. That’s why our church’s service week begins on Wednesdays, not any other time. It is not to say that other times and other ministries are not important, but that the most important priority of church ministries is prayer. The reason is also very simple. It is not we who can do it, but God is able to do everything. Also, being filled with the Holy Spirit doesn’t have to be visible or high-profile. It could be very plain, modest, or even soft-spoken.
Finally, speak the Word of God. The connection is important, the interdependent relationship between the Holy Spirit and the Bible. A person who is filled with the Holy Spirit must be able to speak the word of God. This is also the essential difference in judging whether it is of the Holy Spirit or not. If you want to speak the word of God, it is not easy, you have to pay a price, you have to learn humbly, and search a lot of information. Not putting effort at all, and ignorant, claiming that they have the Holy Spirit, what this kind of person possesses is definitely not the Holy Spirit! In addition, speaking the word of God requires courage. In the antichrist country, we have to face possible prison and other persecution. Speaking the word of God in a free country also requires courage. One person stands on the stage and preaches, and then puts it on the Internet after preaching, so that people all over the world can comment. How dare you talk nonsense! Let’s look at the second point:
Apostles with great power
When a person is filled with the Holy Spirit, he not only speaks the word of God boldly, but also lives out the power of the Lord. First, serve the Lord wholeheartedly. Power in Christ is expressed in the church, and the only sign of that expressed in the church is unity. Power is not about expressing individual ability, but about the unity of the church. When the church is united, the power of the Holy Spirit will be manifested. There are usually three breaches that hinder the church from being single-minded: one is hypocrisy, the other is idolatry, and the third is difficulty in concentrating. Satan is the happiest when the church does not dare to speak the truth. Afraid of offending people, afraid of people leaving, like King Saul, who was eager to offer sacrifices, but despised God. Idolatry is looking at people more than they should, or exalting yourself and belittling others, or having high expectations of someone to the point of admiration. The church is to pray, worship, open up land, plant churches, preach, and mission, so focus and not be distracted!
Second, everything outside of the body belongs to the Lord. We may have always had a misunderstanding, thinking that if a Christian tithes, the rest of the money belongs to him. In fact, God looks more at how we use the nine-tenths of our tithing, whether it honors God and benefits others, and whether we participate in the Lord’s Great Commission. The first-generation believers in the scriptures have set a beautiful testimony and example here. Although the Church of Jerusalem had its special historical pattern at that time, its essence was the same. Especially our brothers and sisters who do business in the workplace should not be proud of money, as if giving is their own credit and glory. A deacon once told me that because he offered a lot in the church, he had special authority over the pastor. A pastor asked the church to return him the $2100 he donated some years ago (2004). A couple came to the house and demanded that the church return him $5000 back (2017). This is not in line with the truth in the Bible about “all to Christ”, but they immediately went mad and left.
Finally, God’s grace was so powerfully at work with the resurrection power. The Lord is resurrected, so why should we argue and make trouble? Those who can understand this sentence have stopped, right? We may have a big misunderstanding about how God’s grace was so powerfully at work. That is, it seems that as long as you are blessed, you must get something. Gains and losses, become things that cannot be lost and can only be gained. The power of the Resurrection in our lives is in our hearts and that is how it affects our core values. Resurrection solves the problem of our life and death, not just our daily needs. Man does not live by bread alone, but by the word from the mouth of God. Such values come from the heart, and the power of resurrection will truly be greatly gracious. Let’s look at the third point:
Put at the feet of the apostles
Why should it be placed at the feet of the apostles? This is a question of authority and a question of belonging. It is also easy for people to misunderstand it as a social system problem. First, there must be no want. The principle of fellowship among believers is to love one another, not favoring one another and showing partiality. Rebekah’s partiality to Jacob caused discord between the brothers and led to tragedy. The establishment of the early church is closely related to the death, resurrection and evangelism of Christ. The church was first established, and the members came from all over the world. There are various and complex problems. What should I do? The first principle is that because the Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want! The me here, of course, bears the brunt of every “I” in the church, and everyone should have no lack. This is also the principle of giving. The lack of the church is my criterion for giving, and the lack of church members is also a consideration for the church’s supply.
Second, according to each person’s needs. Of course, the church is not a shelter, nor is it a welfare home. However, the church is a place where the whole needs of brothers and sisters are met. Overall needs refer to the comprehensive needs of body, mind and spirit. The needs of the body should be satisfied with food and clothing, not extravagance. The contentment of the heart refers to the relationship of loving one another. The principle is to weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. The satisfaction of the spirit is to imitate the Lord, behave in everything in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and become a person who gives an account to God, to others, and to himself. The greatest need in life is to become a person who can give an account to God.
Finally, at the feet of the apostles. In just a few verses, “put at the feet of the apostles” appears twice. These few words show us that the affiliation of authority is aimed at God, and it also puts an end to the space for humanistic activities. Some people think that the situation described here in the Bible is basically the ideal of a communist society. There is a huge difference between aiming at God and aiming at people, completely different. Communism aimed at human beings also has to face the bottleneck of mankind, that is, it is up to me to aspire to do good, but it is embarrassing that I cannot do it. The ultimate goal of human concern can only be aimed at the absolute God, not relative people or things.
Conclusion
Dear brothers and sisters, all to Christ cannot be just a slogan, it must be a truth that can be lived out. You can’t rely on yourself, only on God! It is not that we are able, but God is able to do all things. It is not what we have done, but the Holy Spirit co-works with our hearts and witnesses who we are, what we know and do!
Let us pray……
Acts 4:31-37
31 After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
32 All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had.
33 With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all
34 that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales
35 and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.
36 Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”),
37 sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.
